Warren, Brown fight on in Central Mass.

Friday

Oct 12, 2012 at 6:00 AM

By John J. Monahan TELEGRAM & GAZETTE STAFF

Republican U.S. Sen. Scott P. Brown and his Democratic opponent Elizabeth Warren yesterday headed to Central Massachusetts to stump for votes in the aftermath of their third contentious debate, held in Springfield on Wednesday night.

Mr. Brown, aiming to reinforce a theme he advanced during the debate that he is independent from Republican partisanship in Washington, met up in Hudson yesterday morning to accept an endorsement from a former Democratic state senator, Robert A. Durand.

Mr. Durand, a popular environmentalist who authored the state’s Riverways Protection Act, crossed the political aisle in 1999 to serve in the administration of a boyhood friend, Republican Gov. Paul A. Cellucci, as his secretary of environmental affairs.

Mr. Durand, who served 14 years as a state representative and senator, said Mr. Brown is in line with a tradition of “independent thinkers” in Central Massachusetts not afraid to work with the other party.

“Frankly I don’t feel that we know Elizabeth Warren,” Mr. Durand said in a statement. “She represents the politics of Cambridge, not the independent politics of Massachusetts,” Mr. Durand said.

Ms. Warren meanwhile was in Worcester yesterday afternoon to be cheered on by supporters gathered at the Park Avenue fire station, including Lt. Gov. Timothy P. Murray and U.S. Rep. James P. McGovern, D-Worcester.

Her campaign trumpeted media comments about the debate giving her high marks on sharp attacks on Mr. Brown’s voting record on women’s issues.

During the debate, while Mr. Brown argued he had been protecting women’s rights all his adult life and was pro-choice, Ms. Warren described him as failing on several key votes.

“He has had exactly one chance to vote for equal pay for equal work and he voted no. He had exactly one chance to vote for insurance coverage for birth control and other preventive services for women. He voted no. And he had exactly one chance to vote for a pro-choice woman from Massachusetts for the United States Supreme Court and he voted no. Those are bad votes for women,” Ms. Warren said during the debate.

After greeting firefighters at the fire station, Ms. Warren, a Harvard Law School professor, walked to her Park Avenue headquarters where she was greeted by about 200 cheering supporters, some of whom took to a microphone to tell reporters why they want her elected to the Senate.

City Councilor Philip Palmeiri complained that Mr. Brown voted against President Obama’s jobs bills three times starting a year ago. “Three strikes you are out here. That’s what I know.” The bill would have provided funds for 123,000 jobs nationwide.

Mr. Murray echoed his criticism.

Ms. Warren took up the topic, saying Massachusetts lost a chance to add jobs when the bill was blocked by Republicans.

“It was a year ago today that 22,000 people could have had jobs in Massachusetts and Sen. Brown voted no. Why did Sen. Brown vote no? Because that jobs bill would have been paid for entirely by just a fractional increase in the taxes on the people making more than a million dollars a year,” she said.

“This race is about whose side you stand on,” she said.

Ms Warren said she felt she gained ground in the Springfield debate.

“We had a chance to talk about the issues and that is what really matters. We talked about jobs and Scott Brown’s votes against three jobs bills in a row. We talked about women and Scott Brown’s votes against equal pay for equal work.”

The debate showed two visions for the country.

“The Republicans say cut taxes right at the top and let everybody else pick up the pieces. We believe it’s about everybody pays a fair share and we make those investments in the future,” she said.